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Morning shorts
Friday, May 15, 2009 - Posted by Mike Murray * Suburbs take heavy tax revenue hit when dealership closes * No-haggle end for hundreds of Chrysler dealers
* More than Forty Illinois Chrysler Dealers Get Bad News * Chrysler pulls out of Ridings dealerships * GM dealers expect 1,100 shop cuts * Ford Dealership in Monmouth Closes * Crestwood water: Cancer victim’s widow sues village * EPA: Private Crestwood wells not polluted * State trying set things right at vets home * Chicago wind-power plans eastern Ill. project * Chicago grumbles for art’s sake as ticket prices jump to $16 * Art Institute Modern Wing Opening This Weekend * An addition that enriches Chicago * Ceremony honors Illinois firefighters who died in ’08
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- dupage dan - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 9:09 am:
MOPAR forever!
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 9:40 am:
Illinois will be facing a very difficult future without the auto industry. The auto plants located here will be closing, sending thousands into unemployment. We will be lucky to keep what Ford plants are still open.
80% of auto parts are made by other companies. The auto plants assembly these parts into cars. So the closing of the auto plants will impact these supplier companies as well, sending many of them into bankrupsy and forcing more into the unemployment lines. Chicagoland is a huge auto supplier city, and will be hit nearly as hard as Detroit.
So to all of those who drive foreign autos - thanks for wrecking our economy. While it is true that some manufacturers assemble their foreign cars here - claiming that Camrys, Accords, and Subarus are American is like claiming that the slaves who picked the cotton, owned the plantations. A fraud. As a Mexican worker assembling Fords if they think Ford is a Mexican company.
I have read that Honda is considering moving their headquarters to the US, since this country likes their boring cars more than the Japanese. I hope they do. We need another American car company.
- wordslinger - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 9:50 am:
The Art Institute is one of the great treasures of Chicago. FYI, admission is free Thursday evenings 5-8.
- Wumpus - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 10:39 am:
Well VM, my foreign branded car was made in Alabama. Not saying it is an American company, but it was put together by Americans, non-union Americans. If the reputation of US cars hadn’t fallen so much, maybe that would have been an option. I know the quality is largely perception, but that perception is hard to avoid.
- Plutocrat03 - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 10:40 am:
So now the government has a right to close independent business without legal recourse.
Glad to see the state not standing up for its businesses or employees.
More the 2,000 will go from taxpayers to unemployed in less than 30 days. Why no more notice? Several dozen of the evil rich will lose all they worked for.
No public criteria as to who was selected for dismissal.
Who’s job will Obama take next?
- Rich Miller - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 10:49 am:
=== I know the quality is largely perception===
You bought your car on perception? Sheesh.
- Wumpus - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 10:54 am:
No, but I had a perception that certain cars were not up to quality and that helped bias my opinion.
Actually, I selected the car to buy using chicken bones and incense. Price, reputation, warranty and quality played no part in the decision.
- Wumpus - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 10:56 am:
Oh yeah, PC, when your company gets bailout money from the gov, they can make rules that don’t seem fair.
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:53 am:
when your company gets bailout money from the gov, they can make rules that don’t seem fair.
How much bailout money does a company have to receive before the President starts over-riding everyone else who owns the company? What we have been seeing with Chrysler should cause any American corporation to shudder and cause any investor to not invest in American corporations. Chrysler’s bond holders have been stiffed in bankrupsy court by an administration that doesn’t understand or simply ignors business law and the US Constitution. The Chicago Mob operates in a similar fashion, so I’ve been told.
The fact that a company receives tax money doesn’t qualify it for a national government take-over - that is until this month. Lord help us all if this Administration’s blantantly illegal act is upheld in courts.
- Ghost - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:58 am:
VM makes an excelelnt point,
Just the other day I was working on my ford car. I had to stop thought and go by new tools. My SAE tools would not work on the “american” made vehicle, as everything inside was metric. I went to get a new part for the engine, and was told itwould take a couple of week for it to be shipped from canada.
It appears most of the parts, the steel etc in my ford came from other countries.
So while waiting for my ford parts to be shipped from another country I decided to work on my american made mad harley Davidson motorcyle. I was determined to fix its ongoing electrical problems. I go into to order what I need, and another delay. the electrical sytem is made in japan!
In the modern world any large manufacturer operates as a multibnational corporation. There is no real foreign domestic distincion anymore. All we are really talking about is the location of the parent companies headquarters.
Ford owns companies and operates headquarters in India, South America, Europe etc. Ford manufacurers cars in other countries that are not available in the US. So why do you call ford an “American” car company? t is a multinational just like toyota etc.
Both buy foriegn made parts and assmble cars in the US.
- Wumpus - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 11:59 am:
VM, I agree with your last sentiment that we should be afraid, be very afraid. CEObama already fired the head of GM. There is a lot of back and forth about the Tarp money. I am saying that they probably shoul dnot have been to surprised that lines would be crossed and things would be scary and hairy.
- Plutocrat03 - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 12:00 pm:
The dealers are not beneficiaries of any of the handouts lavished on the car companies. They are generally locally owned small business who had a franchise as an asset. This has been taken away from them in an arbitrary manner by the company and the Federal government.
The Union is not taking the same kinds of hits as the secured debt holders and the independent dealer network. This kind of favoritism may not stand the scrutiny of our legal system.
Again out state is figuring out which taxes to raise, and seems to have no clue on expanding the economy within the state. Who will fill the holes in the municipal budgets from the lost sales tax revenue?
- VanillaMan - Friday, May 15, 09 @ 3:26 pm:
If you didn’t know, the Ford Motor Company is an American business with global operations.
Toyota is a Japanese business with global operations.
Honda is a Japanese business with global operations.
Nissan is a Japanese business with global operations.
Volkswagen is a German business with global operations.
We are losing two American auto businesses with global operations. They are being parted out after they file bankrupsy. Chrysler already did. GM will follow. Losing two American automobile businesses with global operations will not be replaced by the American operations of Japanese auto manufacturers.
Just because a company has global operations in the US, doesn’t make it an American company, regardless of the hype and spin of the foreign company’s PR and ad campaigns.
There is a huge difference.
- wordslinger - Saturday, May 16, 09 @ 9:25 am:
Pluto, the car companies are getting loans. The handouts are for the banks and insurance companies.
With the Chrysler loan of Lee Iacoca fame, the government made money when it was paid back.
- wordslinger - Saturday, May 16, 09 @ 9:30 am:
VMan, I’m with you here. Tell it to your Southern GOP Senate friends (Shelby, Alexander) who are using the global financial meltdown to kill Detroit for the benefit of their home state, non-union, Japanese owned auto plants.